Field Notes from a Friend
In a synthetic age, the most radical thing a person can be is a real, imperfect human being
Short videos from Laura Illig on friendship, community and authenticity – and what it means to build technology that actually serves to better the human condition; technology as a tool for wellness
Not a Luxury Good
Curated friendship isn’t friendship.
That’s just networking.
September 3, 2026 (2:26)
Kickits
The three-word sentence that terrifies
grown adults: “Wanna hang out?”
August 18, 2026 (1:31)
Particulars
Not just people who like what you like.
People who get you.
August 11, 2026 (2:13)
Interests
Everybody likes music. But what you want is
someone who likes East Coast jazz.
August 6, 2026 (2:17)
Sidekick
We built an app to help you put down your phone.
June 22, 2026 (1:31)
Social Wellness
Friendship does more for your health
than your supplements do.
June 15, 2026 (1:22)
Skateboarding
Two lonely students, one dorm, both
skateboarders – and neither knew.
June 7, 2026 (1:32)
McGuffins
What Alfred Hitchcock can teach us
about making friends.
May 31, 2026 (1:45)
Video Slots
Social apps were engineered like
video slot machines. On purpose.
May 24, 2026 (2:16)
The Most Radical Act
A speaker praised AI to graduates and
got booed. I wasn’t surprised.
May 17, 2026 (2:08)
Sit-Down Girls
My six-year-old sorted the world into
two kinds of friends.
May 10, 2026 (1:26)
15 Cigarettes
Loneliness is as bad for you as smoking
15 cigarettes a day.
May 3, 2026 (1:37)
The Loneliest Generation
The most connected generation in history
is also the loneliest.
April 26, 2026 (1:27)
Once a week or so, I sit down and record a short video reflecting on something I’ve been thinking about. Community. Friendship. Loneliness. Why the apps we were told would bring us together have done the opposite. What a different kind of technology could look like.
I call them Field Notes because that’s what they are — simple observations from the ground, from someone who’s been trying to build a better way for a while now. They’re not polished. They’re not produced. They’re just me, talking plainly about the things I care about most.
The thread running through all of them is a way of looking at the world I’ve come to call the New Authenticism. It’s the idea that in a synthetic age, the most radical thing a person can be is a real, imperfect human being.
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The Philosophy Behind the mission
The New Authenticism
In a world full of synthetic media, algorithmic curation, and AI-generated everything, the most radical act – and the most valuable one – is to show up as your real, unoptimized, imperfect self
The New Authenticism is the philosophy that sits underneath everything we build at Sidekick, and underneath everything
Laura makes as an artist · It’s a set of seven principles about what it means to create, to connect,
and to belong in an age of machines that can imitate all three
About the Artist Behind the Field Notes
Laura Illig is also a painter
Outside of Sidekick, Laura makes abstract paintings and mixed-media collages under the name La Woman Studios. Her work is characterized by bold color, emotional honesty, and a celebration of imperfection. Her approach to art and her product vision come from the same place: the belief that the human, imperfect, made-by-hand thing is the most valuable thing there is.
Woman-owned
Mission-driven
Built in Eugene, Oregon
Let’s Re-Build the Connection Economy Together
Whether you’re a potential partner, community organization, or someone
who believes technology should bring people together, we’d love to hear
from you